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Description of Practice:
Dwight L. Armstrong is a partner in the firm's Orange County office. Mr. Armstrong manages the firm's Labor and Employment Law Practice Group and is experienced in both litigation and transactional matters. He represents employers and management in connection with a wide variety of employment and labor relations matters, ranging from wrongful termination and employment discrimination lawsuits and arbitrations to preventative counseling and advice. Mr. Armstrong's practice includes the drafting and implementation of employee handbooks and workplace policies such as sexual harassment, internet and e-mail privacy, drug and alcohol testing, workplace violence, family care, leave of absence and discipline/termination. He has also guided employers through reduction-in-force programs, including compliance with state and federal laws such as the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ("WARN"). Mr. Armstrong's litigation experience includes handling cases at the trial and appellate levels of both state and federal courts. He also represents management at mediations and arbitrations (and serves as a neutral arbitrator on the Employment Law Panel of the American Arbitration Association), as well as during governmental audits and investigations into various compliance issues. These include wage/hour matters before the U.S. Department of Labor and the California Labor Commissioner, allegations of employment discrimination filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, affirmative action reviews conducted by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, unemployment insurance claims, Section 132a discrimination petitions filed with the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board and audits by the Internal Revenue Service and Employment Development Department into alleged misclassification of independent contractors. In the "traditional" labor law arena, Mr. Armstrong has extensive experience representing employers in union election matters, contract negotiations, grievances and arbitrations, unfair labor practice proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board, and in union picketing and strikes.
Mr. Armstrong is a frequent speaker before various groups which have included the American Bar Association, the Chamber of Commerce, the Employers Group, the National Human Resources Association, PIHRA, the Council on Education in Management, the Employers Advisory Council and others. He has addressed topics such as wrongful termination, sexual harassment, workplace violence, dress codes, workplace privacy issues and new state and federal labor laws. He also conducts in-house management training seminars and workshops for clients and has taught labor law courses at the graduate level.
Educational History:
Mr. Armstrong received his B.A. degree in political science in 1974 from Stanford University, where he graduated with departmental honors. He received his J.D. from the University of Southern California in 1977, serving on the editorial board of the Law Review. Prior to commencing his career as a practicing attorney, Mr. Armstrong clerked for the Honorable E. Avery Crary, a senior judge with the U.S. District Court, Central District of California. | 